OSU EMAILER IN BIG TROUBLE, ROSENHAUS SIGNS PRYOR, MORE FROM THE POLICE BLOTTER & A CHIEF COMES TO THE RESCUE
For those of you who have followed the Ohio State debacle from the beginning, you know former Buckeye walk-on Chris Cicero sent Jim Tressel a pair of emails detailing questionable behavior of a few of Tressel's players. One was sent in 2008, the other in April of 2010. Cicero is an attorney & he is currently under investigation by the Ohio Supreme Court's Office of Disciplinary Counsel. It's centered around a complaint of divulging the content of confidential conversations with a prospective client. The client? Edward Rife, former owner of the Columbus tattoo parlor implicated in Tressel's downfall. Rife is currently incarcerated for possession of a controlled substance(200-lbs of pot) with intent to distribute. Rife's current attorney has filed the complaint, alleging Cicero spoke by phone with Rife the day before he sent the 2010 email warning Tressel some of his players were swapping Buckeye memorabilia for tattoos & cash. Cicero had no comment, but if this is true, he could be disbarred. Warning anyone about anything that was said with a client or prospective client is taboo, regardless of your football allegiance. It doesn't let Tressel off the hook, he did what he did, which was nothing except to look the other way & not forward this information onto his A.D. or compliance officer. This whole mess is truly ugly, unethical, hypocritical, dishonest & zero accountability are the story's low lights. Obviously, there are no highlights.
Terrelle Pryor signed with Drew Rosenhaus on Monday, it seems like a perfect fit. Rosenhaus represents Terrell Owens, Chad Ochocinco, Plaxico Burress, Jeremy Shockey, Kellen Winslow Jr., Donte Stallworth, DeSean Jackson & Clinton Portis, all with extensive fine & suspension histories with the NFL. Rosenhaus scheduled a press conference for tomorrow afternoon in Miami where both he & Pryor will speak to the media, "There will be some heartfelt things he's going to say. It's going to be very genuine." Rosenhaus failed to mention if Pryor will take questions, my guess is no way. What's more "heartfelt & genuine" than reading a prepared statement from your agent & then refusing to answer questions? I promise to apologize promptly if I'm wrong. Not really worried.
Got a pair of emails over the weekend with identical questions, "what is the right round for Terrelle Pryor in the supplemental draft or is he undraftable in your opinion?" I think Pryor would have decent value in round five or later. He could become a star but because he carries a gigantic "Buyer Beware" tag, anything higher would be risky IMO. In yesterday's Oakland Tribune, Raider best writer Jerry McDonald penned his opinion of Pryor, the ex-Buckeye could be a "good fit" with Oakland. I agree, a team that drafts track speed & not football players is a perfect landing spot for Pryor. The team that drafted JaMarcus Russell #1 overall should have learned their lesson, but with Al Davis at the helm, anything is possible. McDonald talks about Pryor's potential at wide receiver or tight end. Forget that, Pryor will go kicking & screaming before he surrenders his quarterback dreams.
In the "talk about yer small world" arena, here's a K.C. connection you might not know. The Kansas City Royals called up Omaha 3rd baseman Mike Moustakas last Friday. The power-hitting 22-year old got a message in the Royals locker room before Friday's game in Anaheim. It was from Chiefs' QB Matt Cassel wishing his good luck & welcoming him to "Kansas City's other franchise." Cassel's younger brother, Brian, is Moustakas' best friend, all of them attended Chatsworth High School in California. Brian is currently pitching with the Birmingham Barons(yes the same club Jordan played for). Carrying the small world theme slightly further, Cassel's older brother Jack, a former pitcher in the Padres & Astros organization, is married to Julie Mariani, USC volleyball player & college roommate of Lauren Killian, Cassel's wife. I had to look at my notes 3 times to make sure I got it all right. God, this lockout sucks, I'm reduced to cutesy stories like this.
Something that just never goes away is the good ol' police blotter. This weekend we had a couple of offenders of note. Oregon cornerback Cliff Harris was stopped by state patrolmen traveling at a high rate of speed, how about 118 in a 65? I'm guessing his insurance is heading up, way up. Oh yeah, he was driving on a suspended license. One of the top-5 corners in college football IMO, he's also the most dangerous punt returner in the nation averaging over 16-yards per return & scoring 3 TD's last season. Expect Ducks coach Chip Kelly to suspend Harris one game early in the season. Kenny Britt, Titans wide receiver with 6 arrests on his record in just over 2 years is in trouble again. After being popped by New Jersey narcotics cops for tampering with evidence & resisting arrest last week, Tennessee authorities announced Monday there were two new warrants out for Britt. Seems he "provided false statements & information" when he applied for a his Tennessee driver's license. He omitted being stripped of his license in his native New Jersey. On the application, one of the questions is "have you ever had your driving privileges revoked or suspended?" Pretty concise & to the point right? Britt answered no when in fact his license had be suspended once & revoked once in New Jersey, but who's counting? The Titans finally spoke out about their troubled wideout saying they "couldn't speak to him, but when he returns he will face some severe repercussions."
Over the weekend, a Chief saved a life. The Americus Times-Recorder in Georgia reported Chiefs tight end Leonard Pope, attending a dinner at a friend's home, responded to cries for help from a desperate mother whose son was on the bottom of the backyard swimming pool. Fully dressed, Pope ran out of the house & dove into the water to scoop the child off the bottom & bring him to safety. The woman stated to police, of the 12 people present at the party, Pope was the only one who could swim. Huh? I will never understand why people own pools when no one in the family can swim. It makes no sense, she was very lucky Pope is currently locked out, he could have been in Kansas City for a mini camp or an OTA. Pope refused any comment about his good deed. An NFL player refusing the spotlight? What an admirable quality.
Finally I want to salute Dallas Maverick's owner Mark Cuban. The normally talkative billionaire was virtually invisible during the NBA Finals, I didn't see him on TV until Sunday's game 6. After his team won, Cuban had franchise founder Donald Carter accept the NBA Championship trophy from Commissioner David Stern. I grew weary of Cuban's antics long ago, but if you're a Dallas fan, he's a great owner. Including Carter in the trophy presentation was a class act. Cuban announced upon their return to Dallas, "it's not right for the city to pay for our parade, they're in a budget crisis, we'll pay for it." Excellent.
From my buddy Mike P. in Dallas "there was only one happy Cuban in Miami last night." That's probably correct.
Terrelle Pryor signed with Drew Rosenhaus on Monday, it seems like a perfect fit. Rosenhaus represents Terrell Owens, Chad Ochocinco, Plaxico Burress, Jeremy Shockey, Kellen Winslow Jr., Donte Stallworth, DeSean Jackson & Clinton Portis, all with extensive fine & suspension histories with the NFL. Rosenhaus scheduled a press conference for tomorrow afternoon in Miami where both he & Pryor will speak to the media, "There will be some heartfelt things he's going to say. It's going to be very genuine." Rosenhaus failed to mention if Pryor will take questions, my guess is no way. What's more "heartfelt & genuine" than reading a prepared statement from your agent & then refusing to answer questions? I promise to apologize promptly if I'm wrong. Not really worried.
Got a pair of emails over the weekend with identical questions, "what is the right round for Terrelle Pryor in the supplemental draft or is he undraftable in your opinion?" I think Pryor would have decent value in round five or later. He could become a star but because he carries a gigantic "Buyer Beware" tag, anything higher would be risky IMO. In yesterday's Oakland Tribune, Raider best writer Jerry McDonald penned his opinion of Pryor, the ex-Buckeye could be a "good fit" with Oakland. I agree, a team that drafts track speed & not football players is a perfect landing spot for Pryor. The team that drafted JaMarcus Russell #1 overall should have learned their lesson, but with Al Davis at the helm, anything is possible. McDonald talks about Pryor's potential at wide receiver or tight end. Forget that, Pryor will go kicking & screaming before he surrenders his quarterback dreams.
In the "talk about yer small world" arena, here's a K.C. connection you might not know. The Kansas City Royals called up Omaha 3rd baseman Mike Moustakas last Friday. The power-hitting 22-year old got a message in the Royals locker room before Friday's game in Anaheim. It was from Chiefs' QB Matt Cassel wishing his good luck & welcoming him to "Kansas City's other franchise." Cassel's younger brother, Brian, is Moustakas' best friend, all of them attended Chatsworth High School in California. Brian is currently pitching with the Birmingham Barons(yes the same club Jordan played for). Carrying the small world theme slightly further, Cassel's older brother Jack, a former pitcher in the Padres & Astros organization, is married to Julie Mariani, USC volleyball player & college roommate of Lauren Killian, Cassel's wife. I had to look at my notes 3 times to make sure I got it all right. God, this lockout sucks, I'm reduced to cutesy stories like this.
Something that just never goes away is the good ol' police blotter. This weekend we had a couple of offenders of note. Oregon cornerback Cliff Harris was stopped by state patrolmen traveling at a high rate of speed, how about 118 in a 65? I'm guessing his insurance is heading up, way up. Oh yeah, he was driving on a suspended license. One of the top-5 corners in college football IMO, he's also the most dangerous punt returner in the nation averaging over 16-yards per return & scoring 3 TD's last season. Expect Ducks coach Chip Kelly to suspend Harris one game early in the season. Kenny Britt, Titans wide receiver with 6 arrests on his record in just over 2 years is in trouble again. After being popped by New Jersey narcotics cops for tampering with evidence & resisting arrest last week, Tennessee authorities announced Monday there were two new warrants out for Britt. Seems he "provided false statements & information" when he applied for a his Tennessee driver's license. He omitted being stripped of his license in his native New Jersey. On the application, one of the questions is "have you ever had your driving privileges revoked or suspended?" Pretty concise & to the point right? Britt answered no when in fact his license had be suspended once & revoked once in New Jersey, but who's counting? The Titans finally spoke out about their troubled wideout saying they "couldn't speak to him, but when he returns he will face some severe repercussions."
Over the weekend, a Chief saved a life. The Americus Times-Recorder in Georgia reported Chiefs tight end Leonard Pope, attending a dinner at a friend's home, responded to cries for help from a desperate mother whose son was on the bottom of the backyard swimming pool. Fully dressed, Pope ran out of the house & dove into the water to scoop the child off the bottom & bring him to safety. The woman stated to police, of the 12 people present at the party, Pope was the only one who could swim. Huh? I will never understand why people own pools when no one in the family can swim. It makes no sense, she was very lucky Pope is currently locked out, he could have been in Kansas City for a mini camp or an OTA. Pope refused any comment about his good deed. An NFL player refusing the spotlight? What an admirable quality.
Finally I want to salute Dallas Maverick's owner Mark Cuban. The normally talkative billionaire was virtually invisible during the NBA Finals, I didn't see him on TV until Sunday's game 6. After his team won, Cuban had franchise founder Donald Carter accept the NBA Championship trophy from Commissioner David Stern. I grew weary of Cuban's antics long ago, but if you're a Dallas fan, he's a great owner. Including Carter in the trophy presentation was a class act. Cuban announced upon their return to Dallas, "it's not right for the city to pay for our parade, they're in a budget crisis, we'll pay for it." Excellent.
From my buddy Mike P. in Dallas "there was only one happy Cuban in Miami last night." That's probably correct.
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